Carpenters, do-it-yourself persons and others often find it necessary to cross cut a straight line or an angular cut on wood or various other materials quickly and accurately. Other methods have been used to perform this operation such as a Carpenter's/Framing square and many other devices, however, these devices when used with power tools present extremely dangerous if not fatal, risk's to the user.
A Carpenter's/Framing square was required to measure and mark the cut, thus requiring two operations to make a 90° cut in the work piece. Prior guides required clamping the guide to the work piece to prevent the guide from slipping. This requires a great deal of wasted time. Other guides although similar could make straight or angular cuts but could not be reliably locked at different angles thus causing inaccurate cuts and a great financial loss in expensive materials.
Taking the above factors into consideration it is easy to see that a guide which is safe, dependable and accurate is needed. The guide should allow the user to make a cut without the use of things like a Carpenters/Framing square. The guide should be able to make the majority of cuts without the use of a clamp. The guide should be able to be securely locked at different angles in order to make an accurate cut.
Another guide for a circular saw is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,472,029 to Ketch, issued Dec. 5, 1995 comprises a guide bar having a straight outer edge configured for guiding a peripheral guide surface of the saw housing, a gauge bar having a straight outer edge, and a hinge pivotally connecting the gauge bar to the guide bar. The gauge bar of this device is effective but large, making the device more expensive to fabricate. Saw guides are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,054,077, issued Oct. 18, 1977, entitled “Guide For Hand Held Power Saws,” U.S. Pat. No. 2,926,706, issued on Mar. 1, 1960, entitled “Cross-Cut and Rip Guide Device for Portable Power Saws,” and U.S. Pat. No. 5,271,159, issued on Dec. 21, 1993, entitled “Circular Saw Guide,” These devices require the guide to be aligned in a spaced relation to the contemplated cut to allow for the distance between the saw and the edge of the flange on the saw.